San Francisco 49ers teammates Dre Greenlaw, Brandon Allen have friendship going back to hometown, Arkansas Razorbacks

Both players were stars at Fayetteville High School and played together for a season with the Hogs

After Dre Greenlaw sealed a close, comeback win over Green Bay in the NFC Divisional playoff game, he shared a special moment with an unlikely teammate.

After the pick, TV cameras showed Greenlaw and 49ers backup quarterback Brandon Allen smiling and celebrating together. A quarterback and linebacker sharing jubilation on an NFL sideline is an oddity, but most teammates, regardless of position, don’t share as much history as Greenlaw and Allen.

Former Fayetteville High School and Arkansas Razorbacks star Dre Greenlaw will be playing in his second Super Bowl Sunday. (Photo courtesy of 49ers.com)

Allen graduated four years ahead of Greenlaw at Fayetteville (Arkansas) High School. Allen’s brother, Austin, who is two years younger than Brandon, won a state championship with Greenlaw at FHS and the Allen’s younger sister, Daniela, was a classmate of Greenlaw’s.

Then, all three former Bulldogs played together at the University of Arkansas. Brandon redshirted and Greeenlaw played in the secondary as a true freshman allowing them to be teammates for a season. Also a part of those teams were the Allens’ dad, Bobby, who served as an assistant coach and high school football relations director for the Hogs for decades.

Bobby Allen has the unique perspective of seeing all three from an early age. It’s easy to tell that the entire Allen family has a kinship with Greenlaw, who was an orphan until his former high school defensive coordinator Brian Early, now a defensive line coach at the University of Missouri adopted him.

“Both of them had stellar high school and college careers and to see them playing together now is special,” said Bobby Allen, who will be in Las Vegas at this Sunday’s Super Bowl when the 49ers take on the Kansas City Chiefs. “They have shared a lot together, and now they get to be teammates again with a chance to win a Super Bowl together.”

Brandon Allen, a 2011 FHS graduate, passed for 3,408 yards and 38 TDs as a senior and was a coveted recruit. He signed with Arkansas and redshirted his first season and the next year served as a backup to star QB Tyler Wilson. He began his reign as the starter in 2013. He finished with 7,463 yards with 64 touchdowns and 26 interceptions. His senior season was highlighted by a 53-52 overtime win at Ole Miss in which he passed for a school-record six TDs and ran in the game-winning two-point conversion.

Allen was the Texas Bowl MVP in a 31-7 victory against Texas his junior season and Arkansas ran over Kansas State in the Liberty Bowl his senior year.

Brandon Allen was one of the top prep QBs in the nation and starred at Arkansas. (Photo courtesy of University of Arkansas sports information) 

Brandon Allen’s NFL career been as a backup including as the understudy to high-profile stars such as then-Los Angeles Rams’ starter Jared Goff and Cincinnati Bengals star Joe Burrow. Allen was drafted in the sixth round by the Jacksonville Jaguars but cut after one year. In 2017 and 18, he served as the No. 3 QB for the Los Angeles Rams. In 2019, he served as Joe Flacco’s backup at Denver and started a game against the Cleveland Browns when Flacco was injured. The Broncos won the game and Allen passed for 193 yards.

He was on the Cincinnati Bengals roster for three seasons backing up star Joe Burrow and saw a few starts during that stint and was part of the Bengals Super Bowl LVI team.

He signed with the 49ers before this season and is the No. 3 QB behind starter Brock Purdy and journeyman backup Sam Darnold.

This Super Bowl run marks the third he has been a part of in his career. He’s still looking for his first ring.

“He’s been very fortunate to be a part of some good teams and have a chance to win,” Bobby Allen said. “it has been a great experience for him.”

One of the storylines on this talented 49er team has been second-year quarterback Purdy, an Iowa State product who was drafted with the final pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. He’s burst on the scene last year and helped San Francisco to the NFC Championship game. The elder Allen said all three 49er quarterbacks have blended well.

“Brandon and Sam are doing everything they can to help [Purdy] be successful,” he said. “They all get along well and work well together.”

Greenlaw had to overcome off-the-field struggles before he could focus on football. He was in and out of group homes and foster homes as a child and before his sophomore year at FHS was headed back to the foster home system, but Early stepped in. He and his wife adopted Greenlaw and kept him at FHS.

“Brian did a great job of stepping in and taking care of him,” Bobby Allen said.

With his home life stable, Greenlaw became a three-year starter in high school and helped the Bulldogs to the state title his sophomore year and an appearance in the title game as a senior. He was one of the top recruits in the state. He chose Arkansas over Georgia, Washington State and others.

Bobby Allen was a longtime University of Arkansas staff member and saw two sons play QB for the Razorbacks. (Photo courtesy of the University of Arkansas Sports Information.)

With the Hogs, he started immediately and recorded 95 tackles his freshman year. He only played seven games his sophomore year but stood out as a starter as a junior and senior and was a team captain his final year in Fayetteville. He also moved from safety to linebacker by the end of his tenure. 

The 49ers took Greenlaw in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, and he has been a fixture at linebacker ever since. Just like at Arkasnas he played immediately, rackin up eight tackles and picking off a Russell Wilson pass in a 27-24 overtime loss to Seattle.

Greenlaw totaled a career-high 127 total tackles in 2022 and recorded 120 this season. He also had a career-high six pass deflections last season.

When Bobby Allen saw Greenlaw running after the interception against Green Bay, he flashed back to the linebacker’s younger years.

“We always teach that when you intercept a pass like that, that you need to get down, so that is what I was thinking as I watched it,” he said. “But, Dre has always been a threat to score. He played on both sides of the ball, and he was always a threat.”

Bobby Allen said the exchange the two friends had on the sideline following the Packers win was heart-warming.

“That was a great moment,” Bobby Allen said. “Dre came up big, and they both enjoyed that. They are former teammates from way back, and that was great to see them both smiling and happy. Brandon was happy for him to make that play.”

--Nate Olson I nate@scoreboklive.com I @ndosports